NOTE: DESCRIPTION CORRECTED.

This is about a crime fighting newspaperman. Brad McKay, played by Lee Tracy, whom I have never heard of, works with the police to solve a case involving $100k and some murders. He is wisecracking and thinks his way, rapidly, out of the surprises.

Visit: VintageNewscast.com


This movie is part of the collection: Film Noir

Producer: Robert Florey
Audio/Visual: sound, B&W
Keywords: the pay off; vintage;

Creative Commons license: Public Domain

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Reviewer: larry76 - - May 11, 2013
Subject: larry76
I had heard . and have heard of Lee Tracy, he may not have been one of note but he still could play a good part. This movie was one of the best. It was fast moving, funny, clever and well acted. It didn't need the special affects that is in use today to cover up the lack of story line, and acting , that Hollywood gives us today. Thanks again to archive.org for letting us see the great movies of the past.

Reviewer: Slater41 - - September 14, 2012
Subject: wrong date
This film was released in 1942, not 1935. Two different movies with the same title, different spellings.

Reviewer: porterville - - September 5, 2011
Subject: Lee Tracy Good in "The Pay Off"
This is a good 1942 film (not 1935 as noted on Internet Archive). The acting and plot are good with Lee Tracy in top form as a newspaper reporter.

Reviewer: earthquakepills - - October 23, 2010
Subject: This film is from 1942, not 1935
The 1935 film of the same title is about a sports reporter.

Reviewer: kareneliot - - August 14, 2010
Subject: entertaining
I agree with everyone else: this is a really good one, worth watching and deserves 4 stars.

Reviewer: bstepno - - January 11, 2009
Subject: more about Lee Tracy
Tracy seems to have spent half his career playing fast-talking reporters; he was the original "Hildy Johnson" on Broadway in "The Front Page" in 1928 (Pat O'Brien got the part in the film). He played reporters in comedies, dramas and at least one horror flick (the original "Dr. X"). I wonder if this one was written with him in mind.

Reviewer: Aitchondo - - January 5, 2009
Subject: Amazing what one sees in these great films.
First off, I love Jack LaRue (John Angus in the film), one of the best "bad" guys. Then there was the point at the station when they picked up the package and the cop in uniform happen to be (I can't remember his name) the head of the radio station (WKRP in Cinn). Love the wit of this film. Fun to watch.

Reviewer: polistra - - January 4, 2009
Subject: This is the 1942 Payoff...
A couple notes: Lee Tracy played the very same wise-cracking newshawk in 'The Strange Loves of Molly Louvain', starring Ann Dvorak, 1932.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0023525/

Also, this is the 1942 'The Payoff',

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036255/

not the 1935 'The Payoff'.

Reviewer: Fireball Steve Zodiac - - January 4, 2009
Subject: the caption is wrong
The caption isn't even close. This is about a crime fighting newspaperman. Brad McKay, played by Lee Tracy, whom I have never heard of, works with the police to solve a case involving $100k and some murders. He is wisecracking and thinks his way, rapidly, out of the surprises. A fun frolicking film. A good mystery, nicely paced, great dialogue. You'll like it.

Reviewer: Yogirajj - - December 27, 2008
Subject: Correction
Thank you so much for taking the time to review my post. I have made a correction to the description.

Reviewer: Julian Fitzgerald - - December 27, 2008
Subject: entertaining film - wrong description
there are some funny lines in this film.
the description - here and at imdb - do however not match. nothing of this happens in the film